Safety on the Diving Board

Ivanhoe Newswire

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- In the heat of the summer, everyone loves a dip in the pool, but parents beware: diving board injuries are a common occurrence among children.

Every year in the United States, about 6,500 children are rushed to the emergency room because of a diving related injury, a new study reveals. That equates to one injury every hour of every day most pools are open. Those who are most likely to get hurt are 10 to 14 year olds. Boys are also twice as likely to suffer a head or neck injury or fracture.

Surprisingly, higher diving boards were not to blame. "More than 80 percent of the dive injuries were from a dive height of less than or equal to one meter," Lara McKenzie, Ph.D., principal investigator at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, was quoted as saying. "So, that is not the highest dive, that's not a platform dive, this is the lowest dive height available at the pool."

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Diving is one of the fastest growing sports in this country with more than 20,000 people younger than age 18 who dive competitively. This is the first study of its kind.

Experts say to prevent injuries divers should be educated about jumping into shallow water from the pool edge, depth indicators should be placed around pools, pools should be constructed with soft bottoms and obstacles should be removed from lakes, rivers and oceans.

SOURCE: Pediatrics, 2008;122:e388-e394

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